The use of new technology in prevention and treatment of psychiatric diseases - preliminary results

Introduction The COVID-19 outbreak is a serious global public health issue with wide-ranging negative effects on people’s lives, which is reflected in steadily rising mental health problems. In order to appropriately respond to the increased occurrence of psychiatric illness, protect mental health and strengthen resilience it is necessary to include new technologies, such as extended reality (XR) or socially assistive robots (SAR) in not only psychiatric treatment but also in the prevention of psychiatric diseases. In this context, the use of new technologies offers innovative ways to strengthen resilience, self-efficacy and stress coping skills and plays an important role in improving psychological wellbeing. Objectives Preliminary results from studies at the Clinical Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapeutic Medicine in Graz, Austria, dealing with new technologies in psychiatry, show new options for psychiatric settings. Methods Project AMIGA: The aim of this study is to test the effectiveness of a cognitive training session, conducted with the SAR named Pepper. In this randomized controlled trial, the effectiveness of SAR on depressive symptoms and correlates is evaluated in a sample of 60 individuals with major depression. While the intervention group will receive cognitive training with the SAR Pepper, the control group will receive “treatment-as-usual” therapy with a common PC software. Participants will receive 30 minutes of training 2 times per week over a period of 3 weeks. Project XRes4HEALTH: The aim of this study is to develop an XR resilience training to increase resilience and stress coping mechanisms in healthcare workers. A total of 40 people will be included. To test the effectiveness of the resilience training, 3 XR training sessions of 15 minutes each will be held. A pre-post measurement will test the effectiveness of the training on wellbeing and stress levels as well as the acceptance and satisfaction with the training. Project AI-REFIT: The overall goal of this study is to explore key information to increase resilience in healthy individuals who are at increased risk for mental health problems. Through a usability study, the artificial intelligence-based prototype app of the resilience training will be tested for acceptance, usability, functionality, and efficiency. During the resilience training, participants are wearing a smartwatch which measures psychophysiological parameters. Conclusions about the success of the therapy can be drawn based on digital data acquisition. Results New technologies including XR and SAR support classical psychiatric treatment in the topics of resilience and cognitive training as an add-on therapy in times of reduced availability of healthcare workers. Conclusions The rapid development of new technologies holds a lot of potential in the treatment of psychiatric disorders, which is why it is important to scientifically evaluate those innovative tools. Disclosure of Interest None Declared

Introduction: Eating Disorders (EDs) as a public health concern were explored by numerous studies, where attention was drawn to further exploration of Anorexia Nervosa (AN) in non-western countries due to the existing gap in the area (Cummins et al., 2005;Javier & Belgrave, 2019).The studies emphasized the importance of exploring the perceptions and attitudes of healthcare practitioners in order to improve the quality of medical care for people who have AN (Atti et al., 2020;Colmsee et al., 2021;Costa-Val et al., 2019;Ghaderi et al., 2020;Jafar & Morgan 2021;Kohrt et al., 2020;Reas et al., 2021).Little research related to EDs in Central Asia has been found among previous literature.This study contributes to further research in this area taking into account societal and cultural specifics existing in Kyrgyzstan.Objectives: Healthcare practitioners are accessible for the majority of the population of Bishkek through the local primary healthcare (PHC) structure.Therefore, the perceptions of the local PHC workers were explored within the present study.The aim of the current research was to explore how primary healthcare practitioners perceive AN and people who have AN in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.Methods: Six semi-structured interviews with six PHC workers who currently provide medical care for the local population were conducted in accordance with the Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA).The results were discussed in frames of the Social Constructionism theory.Results: The interviews uncovered major themes which show how the participants perceive AN and people with AN.According to the participants, AN develops due to stress.Families of AN patients carry the heavy burden of the disorder.The participants described how local and western socio-cultural standards influence the development of AN and seeking treatment process.AN patients do not want to be treated due to the stigmatization of mental health area within the local population and self-stigmatization of mental health disorders.However, the participants themselves have both positive and negative attitudes towards the mental healthcare.Conclusions: The participants represent local societal perceptions and attitudes related to EDs and AN among medical professionals in accordance with the social constructionism theory.Overall, the PHC physicians in Bishkek have positive attitudes towards AN patients.They feel compassionate towards people who need their professional help.However, the participants feel like they are not able to provide the appropriate medical help for the population with AN due to the way PHC structure in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan functions.Local PHC practitioners do not receive enough resources to provide medical care for people with mental health issues in general.The important discourse uncovered within the present study is the attention brought to the local PHC structure.

EPV0477
The use of new technology in prevention and treatment of psychiatric diseases -preliminary results

Introduction:
The COVID-19 outbreak is a serious global public health issue with wide-ranging negative effects on people's lives, which is reflected in steadily rising mental health problems.In order to appropriately respond to the increased occurrence of psychiatric illness, protect mental health and strengthen resilience it is necessary to include new technologies, such as extended reality (XR) or socially assistive robots (SAR) in not only psychiatric treatment but also in the prevention of psychiatric diseases.In this context, the use of new technologies offers innovative ways to strengthen resilience, self-efficacy and stress coping skills and plays an important role in improving psychological wellbeing.Objectives: Preliminary results from studies at the Clinical Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapeutic Medicine in Graz, Austria, dealing with new technologies in psychiatry, show new options for psychiatric settings.Methods: Project AMIGA: The aim of this study is to test the effectiveness of a cognitive training session, conducted with the SAR named Pepper.In this randomized controlled trial, the effectiveness of SAR on depressive symptoms and correlates is evaluated in a sample of 60 individuals with major depression.While the intervention group will receive cognitive training with the SAR Pepper, the control group will receive "treatment-as-usual" therapy with a common PC software.Participants will receive 30 minutes of training 2 times per week over a period of 3 weeks.Project XRes4HEALTH: The aim of this study is to develop an XR resilience training to increase resilience and stress coping mechanisms in healthcare workers.A total of 40 people will be included.To test the effectiveness of the resilience training, 3 XR training sessions of 15 minutes each will be held.A pre-post measurement will test the effectiveness of the training on wellbeing and stress levels as well as the acceptance and satisfaction with the training.Project AI-REFIT: The overall goal of this study is to explore key information to increase resilience in healthy individuals who are at increased risk for mental health problems.Through a usability study, the artificial intelligence-based prototype app of the resilience training will be tested for acceptance, usability, functionality, and efficiency.During the resilience training, participants are wearing a smartwatch which measures psychophysiological parameters.Conclusions about the success of the therapy can be drawn based on digital data acquisition.Results: New technologies including XR and SAR support classical psychiatric treatment in the topics of resilience and cognitive training as an add-on therapy in times of reduced availability of healthcare workers.Conclusions: The rapid development of new technologies holds a lot of potential in the treatment of psychiatric disorders, which is why it is important to scientifically evaluate those innovative tools.

EPV0478
Closing the psychological treatment and mental health literacy gaps using ResilienceNhope, an evidence-based text and email messaging innovative program Introduction: There is a high prevalence of stress, anxiety, depression, and substance use disorders in college students globally.Financial stressors, course workload, peer pressure and other personal, family, and societal stressors contribute to the high incidence of mental disorders among college students.Despite the high prevalence of mental disorders in college students, barriers such as lack of mental health literacy, stigma of mental health, inadequate numbers of mental health counsellors and clinical psychologists supporting students in colleges in both low-and high-income countries, financial and geographical barriers often hinder college students from accessing the needed mental supports.Objectives: In this article, we provide a perspective on the Resi-lienceNHope program, an evidence-based text and email messaging innovation to close the psychological treatment gap and improve the mental health literacy of university and college students.Methods: Review of literature.There is increasing evidence on the effectiveness and feasibility of mobile technology in health promotion and closing psychological treatment gaps.College students are well adapted to the use of mobile technology, particularly text and email messaging daily, which presents a unique opportunity for an innovative way to offer support for their mental health.Results: There's evidence to support the findings that ResilienceN-Hope program, which involves the use of text and email messaging is an innovative tool which can be adopted to close the psychological treatment gap and improve the mental health literacy of university and college students Conclusions: Supportive text messaging can be adopted to help support and improve the mental health of university and college students.

EPV0479
Effectiveness of tailored digital health interventions for mental health at the workplace: A systematic review of randomised controlled trials Introduction: Mental health problems in the workplace are common and have a considerable impact on employee wellbeing and productivity.Mental ill-health costs employers between £33 billion and £42 billion a year.According to a 2020 HSE report, roughly 2,440 per 100,000 workers in the UK were affected by work-related stress, depression, or anxiety, resulting in an estimated 17.9 million working days lost.This study is part of the EMPOWER study.The European Intervention to Promote Wellbeing and Health in the Workplace (EMPOWER) consortium's aim is to create an individualised digital tool that promotes employee wellbeing, mental health, and work productivity.It has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/hori-zon2020/en/home)and innovation program under grant agreement No 848180.Objectives: We performed a systematic review of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) to assess the effect of tailored digital health